Research Guides
Recommended Reads for Equity: Fiction
Fiction A - J
Recommended by: Anonymous, Staff UW Seattle, Health Science Library
"A nameless boy takes us through his experience of being an Arab Israeli; a citizen who is still a Palestinian. As he effortlessly blends in to his contradicting environment, issues of identity, beliefs, and language are explored. A different take on the Palestinian Israeli conflict."
Recommended by: Anonymous, Staff UW Seattle, School of Nursing
Recommended by: Nicole Gustavsen, Staff UW Bothell, UWB/Cascadia College Library
"This one is on our list as a potential future Community Reads book. A novel about a young queer Iraqi man's coming of age during the Iraq war. Another difficult read in terms of content. In my experience there's a real dearth of readily available literature both by and about queer and trans Muslim folks, so I'm excited that this book could make it into your collection! https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25074253-god-in-pink "
Recommended by: Holly Williams, Staff UW Seattle, Bioengineering
"This is a fictional story about generational trauma that stems from the Atlantic Slave Trade and slavery in America. It shows how racism manifests within individuals throughout time, which I think is important for understanding the experience for people of color, specifically Black Americans, in society today."
Recommended by: Becky Howsmon, Staff UW Seattle, Robinson Center
"This provides a longitudinal insight into slavery - what it means and its impact - from the slave trade in the Gold Coast to current times"
Recommended by: Brianna Jones, Student UW Seattle, Social Work
"From a fictional perspective, this book tells a story of what it's like to be a Black man in America. Though it is set in a past context and has more fantastical elements, it teaches about human experience in perseverance in the face of inequity in a way no other book has achieved."
Recommended by: Caitlan Maxwell, Staff UW Bothell, UWB/CC Library
Fiction K - Z
Killers of the Flower Moon
Recommended by: Anonymous, Staff UW Seattle, Prospect Development
"This book is a unique way to learn more about the history of disenfranchising Native Americans throughout our time in this country. It starts seemingly as a murder mystery, but quickly becomes so much more as it explores the ways in which white men used murder and power to get what the wanted from the Osage Tribe."
Recommended by: Madeline, Staff UW Seattle, UW Libraries
"I've read two mystery novels by Nina Revoyr and both struck me as being really gripping and engaging thrillers that take into account the dynamics of difference and power that shape our world and that so many mystery/thriller authors gloss over."
Passing
- E-BOOK AVAILABLE UW Libraries has a separate listing of this book as an e-book. Click the link to see if the book is currently available online.
Recommended by: Taylor Healey-Brooks, Student UW Seattle, Information School
" As a black woman, this book transformed my life. Everyone needs to read Passing because it provides extraordinary insight into the human condition. It is a story of morality, injustice, love, hope, and tragedy in 1930s Harlem, NY. The book serves a disruption to the rigid divisions of race, class, and sexuality. What does it mean to be black? What does it mean to be white? Or Poor? Or Wealthy?. A book far ahead of it's time Nella Larsen's novel allows the reader to examine these terms equity and diversity and genuinely understand the power behind these words."
Recommended by: Amy Scott-Zerr, Alumna UW Seattle, English, History and International Studies
"This is a book of poetry that collages history with memoir and sociology to discuss the concerns of Hawaiian Creole English, also known as pidgin English. The book discusses the local settler history of the islands, the way that this language has been displaced and how it is being re-appropriated. It is a very sweet book written with a lot of sensitivity. And it's lots of fun. It's very creative, very unique. It is a respectful tribute written in honor of this once disparaged part of Hawaiian history, a language that emerged to unite peoples across ethnic groups from the plantation days to the territorial days before statehood and beyond."
"A story told about the civil war in Lebanon, from a teenager's point of view. Zahra's story is also about the wars that rage in homes and within ourselves. Even though Zahra feels powerless in the face of these wars, she finds ways to exert herself in a difficult environment."
Recommended by: Anonymous
"This book increased my understanding of the experience of transgender/non-binary children and their families. I am a better person for having read this book, and I believe that whole-heartedly."
Recommended by: Nicole Gustavsen, Staff UW Bothell, UWB/CC Campus Library
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